Nishioka and Casilla flip defensively but not in the lineup

SARASOTA, FLA. -- I'm at the newly renovated Ed Smith Stadium, trying to get the lay of the land. Will drop back here later with a pregame update.

Update: Gardy said he likes having Nishioka in the No. 2 spot and Casilla in the No. 9 spot, doesn't plan to flip them. But he did flip them defensively. Nishi will play SS and Casilla will play 2B the next two games.

"I feel really comfortable with [Nishioka at No. 2]," Gardenhire said. "I like Lexi at the bottom. My preference is Lexi at the bottom. That turns the lineup over really nice with speed. You go 9-1-2 that can really fly, I like that."

What does Nishioka bring to the No. 2 spot?

"He’s a proven hitter in Japan, and I think he’ll be here," Gardenhire said. "He’s a great contact guy. He can handle the bat. He can flip the ball around. You know, he can bunt, he can do a lot of those things. His speed plays out really good. Hit and run -- all those things. You see the way he handles the bat, you know he can get the bat on the ball."

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Phil Miller covered three seasons of Twins baseball, but that was at a different ballpark for a different newspaper. Now Miller returns to the baseball beat after joining the Star Tribune as the Gopher football writer in 2010, and he won't miss the dingy dome for a minute. In addition to the Twins and Gophers, Miller covered the Utah Jazz and the NBA for six years at The Salt Lake Tribune.